Bach: Cantata No. 201 “Geschwinde, ihr wirbelnden Winde” / Masaaki Suzuki, Bach Collegium Japan
This secular cantata, believed to be based on a libretto by Picander, is a musical drama (a dramma per musica) based on the Greek myth of “The dispute between Phoebus and Pan”. Like the “Coffee Cantata”, it was composed for performance at the Café Zimmermann in Leipzig. The instrumental arrangement is three trumpets, two flute traversos, two oboes, string ensemble, and basso continuo. There is a famous anecdote about this piece, which is said to be Bach’s own sarcastic rebuttal to a certain “musical dispute” that he was fighting at the time regarding him and his music, but I do not have the space to go into detail here. If you are interested, please refer to this page.
The six soloists play the following roles:
Phoebus (Apollo) – Bass
Pan – Bass
Momus – Soprano
Tmolus (God of the Mountain, Judge, Defender of Phoebus) – Tenor
Midas (King of Pessinus, Judge, Defender of Pan) – Tenor
Mercury – Alto
The cantata begins with the chorus “Geschwinde, ihr wirbelnden Winde”. It is a prologue by all the characters. The first recitative is a conversation between Phoebus and Pan, in which each boasts about the musical battle (though Bach did not musicalize the scene) and criticizes the other. At the end, Momus (God of Satire) intervenes. Next comes Momus’ aria “Patron, das macht der Wind!”, accompanied by basso continuo. In the next recitative, Mercury urges Phoebus and Pan to choose their own recommender, Phoebus chooses Tmolus, and Pan chooses Midas. Next comes the aria “Mit Verlangen drück ich deine zarten Wangen” sung by Phoebus. This aria is the most beautiful aria in the cantata, and is a fitting climax. It is accompanied by flute, oboe d’amore, muted strings and basso continuo, and the melody is sure to be one of the top ten of Bach’s cantatas.
Following the recitatives of Momus and Pan, Pan’s aria “Zu Tanze, zu Sprunge” is sung to a light dance rhythm, accompanied by violins in unison. This piece is sung as “vulgar” or “poor” music, as an antithesis to the profound aria that preceded it. The lyrics in the middle section can be seen as a criticism of “difficult music”, and the complexity of the figures in the basso continuo symbolizes this. In other words, this is where Bach’s irony appears.
In the next recitative, Mercury urges the judges to make their judgment. Tmolus declares Phoebus the winner and sings the aria “Phoebus, deine Melodei” with an obbligato for the oboe d’amore. This is also moving music with a Sicilian rhythm. In the next recitative, Pan urges Midas to make his own judgment. Midas responds with the aria “Pan ist Meister, last ihn gehn!”. He praises Pan’s music, but at the lyrics “Denn nach meinen beiden Ohren Singt er unvergleichlich schön (Because to both my ears He sings incomparably beautiful)” Bach inserts a “donkey braying” figure for violin and basso continuo as a witty dig at Midas.
In the next recitative, other characters hurl insults and abuse at Midas, and finally Phoebus changes Midas’ ears into “donkey ears”. The final aria, “Aufgeblasne Hitze, aber wenig Grütze”, has didactic lyrics, sung by Mercury with two traverso flutes obbligato. The final recitative, also with didactic content, is sung by Momus. The cantata closes with the choral piece “Labt das Herz, ihr holden Saiten”, which expresses a tribute and triumph to “high art”. #baroque #bach #cantata #片山俊幸 https://excelkobo.net/bachwerke/archive/BWV0201.pdf
